A Patient Safety Organization (PSO) is a group, institution, or association that improves medical care by reducing medical errors. Common functions of patient safety organizations are data collection and analysis, reporting, education, funding, and advocacy. A PSO differs from a Federally designed Patient Safety Organization (PSO), which provides health care providers in the U.S. privilege and confidentiality protections for efforts to improve patient safety and the quality of patient care delivery (see 42 U.S.C. 299b-21 et seq. and www.PSO.AHRQ.gov.) In the 1990s, reports in several countries revealed a staggering number of patient injuries and deaths each year due to avoidable errors and deficiencies in health care, among them adverse events and complications arising from poor infection control. In the United States, a 1999 report from the Institute of Medicine called for a broad national effort to prevent these events, including the establishment of patient safety centers, expanded reporting of adverse events, and development of safety programs in healthcare organizations. Although many PSOs are funded and run by governments, others have sprung from private entities such as industry, professional and consumer groups. Functions To achieve their goals, patient safety organizations may Collect data on the prevalence and individual details of errors. Analyze sources of error by root cause analysis. Propose and disseminate methods for error prevention. Design and conduct pilot projects to study safety initiatives, including monitoring of results. Raise awareness and inform the public, health professionals, providers, purchasers, and employers. Conduct fundraising and provide funding for research and safety projects. Advocate for regulatory and legislative changes. Governmental organizations World Health Organization World Alliance for Patient Safety In response to a 2002 World Health Assembly Resolution, the World Health Organization (WHO) launched the World Alliance for Patient Safety in October 2004. The goal was to develop standards for patient safety and assist UN member states to improve the safety of health care. The Alliance raises awareness and political commitment to improve the safety of care and facilitates the development of patient safety policy and practice in all WHO Member States. Each year, the Alliance delivers a number of programs covering systemic and technical aspects to improve patient safety around the world. At the Fifty-Ninth World Health Assembly in May 2006, the Secretariat reported that the Alliance held patient safety meetings in five of the six WHO regions and 40 technical workshops in 18 countries. Since the launch of the Alliance in